I guess there's an uproar about the new cover of Ms. Magazine. Obama strikes the classic Superman pose, ripping open his shirt to reveal a "THIS IS WHAT A FEMINIST LOOKS LIKE" shirt. It seems that the central argument is that women can speak for ourselves and having Obama as a prominent face of feminism is simply glorifying men and putting women in a damsel role, waiting to be saved by the shining knight of feminism.
While I see the point of this argument, it seems to me that it's high time we really allowed men a place in feminism. While making a man a poster-boy for feminism is probably a bit extreme, the Ms. cover doesn't really do that. Rather than make Obama the face of feminism, the cover merely conveyed the sense of hope that I share with many as his inauguration nears. Obama is a self-identified feminist, the first in the White House (as far as I know). He enters his presidency with a Vice-President who co-authored the Violence Against Women Act. This truly promises to be a great time for feminism.
Rather than remain entrenched in first and second (and some third) wave feminist exclusionary practices, we should embrace a more cooperative movement. Obama is about to become one of, possibly THE, most influential people in the country. I don't think a celebration of what his position could mean for women's rights is cause for outrage.
I'd like to hear what other people have to say about this, especially opposing viewpoints, so please leave your comments!
I wish I had something more to say, but at this point I pretty much agree with everything you said. When I first read this post all I read was the first paragraph - and then had to go wander off somewhere to do something.
As I wandered I was thinking this over and got about as far as "I get why this could be an issue, but it seems kind of petty to make it one." I hadn't articulated what all was on the other side, but coming back to read the rest you did it for me.
It feels like being on the playground and playing "Boys have cooties".
Thank you AJ for this. Like Cory said, you really voiced exactly what I was thinking. I get so frustrated when women talk down men when they discriminate and put women down, but then can't be okay with a man who might possibly work towards positive change for women.